Collarette fabric



June 13, 1950 c. R. ANDI-:RsoN

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l Patented June 13, 1950 .UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COLLARETTE FABRIC Carroll R. Anderson, Minneapolis, Minn., assignor to Munsingwear, Inc., Minneapolis, Minn., a corporation of Delaware Application September 28, 1949, Serial No. 118,258

This invention relates to new and useful imcertain characteristics not found in other mateprcvements in knitted fabrics, and more particurials and which are essential to bring about delarly to an elastic fabric which lends itself for sired qualities of the fabric herein disclosed. use in the construction of the collar and cuil. A rib knit fabric is employed in this invention portions of certain garments such as sweaters, which is composed of at least one primary or and various other garments wherein the collar nylon yarn or thread, and one or more secondary and cuff portions and sometimes the ankle porthreads which may be of cotton, rayon, or wool, tions, must be more or less stretchable to facilitate of which cotton thread is preferred. The primary slipping the garment on or of! the body. and secondary threads or yarns may be inter- This application is a continuation-impart of'lo knitted on a conventional knitting machine to my application Serial No. 714,816, filed December provide the desired rib-knit fabric. I have also 7, 1946, now abandoned. discovered one peculiarity in the use of nylon There are numerous garments on the market for primary thread, which, up to the present, in which the neck and cuff portions are composed I have been unable to find in any other material, of an elastic or readily stretchable fabric which and that is the stitches of the nylon thread have Will permit the neck and cuff portions of the the inherent characteristic of taking a so-called garment to stretch readily over portions of the set, when embodied in a fabric by the knitting body when putting the garment on or removing process. It is meant by the term set, that the it from the body. A garment of this general type primary nylon thread or yarn acquires the shape is the well known crew-neck sweater. Such 3 of the stitches of the fabric as initially formed garments are close fitting around the neck, and by the knitting process. The primary nylon the neck portions thereof are usually made from thread or yarn seeks to retain this undistorted a continuous piece or strip of fabric which must form and provides a fabric which is of such a be elastic to permit the head to pass therethrough nature as to permit opening or elongation of the when slipping the garment on or oil'. The wrist u stitches, when the fabric is subjected to stretchportions of such garments are also usually proing strains, but which will prevent permanent vided with an elastic fabric which, like the neck distortion of the stitches, whereby the fabric will portion, is usually continuous around the wrist, retain its initial elasticity indefinitely, even whereby the cuffs of the garment may readily be though the fabric may be frequently momentarily stretched topermit the hands to be passed therestretched, as when slipping the garment on or through and with the assurance that the garoff the body. ment will always be close tting about the ankles. An important object of the present invention,

Heretofore, the fabric used in the neck and therefore, is to provide an elastic rib-knit fabric cuff portions of such garments, and many others composed of a nylon primary thread or yarn and falling in this class have usually been knitted one or more other secondary threads, the primary from one or more threads with or without rubber, thread having the inherent characteristic of or of body fabric threads, which threads initially tending to retain the original shape of the stitch impart the desired elasticity to the fabric. There in the knitting process thus preventing permanent is one serious objection to the use of elastic fabrics distortion of the stitches of the fabric when the so constructed, and that is its elasticity is usually latter is subjected to stretching strains. short-lived, when the garment is frequently A further object is to provide a highly servicelaundered. able elastic rib-knit fabric having a high degree After considerable research and experimental of elasticity, and which will retain its original work, I have discovered that an elastic fabric may elasticity indefinitely, even when frequently be constructed without actually utilizing rubber laundered. threads or yarns in its construction, and that such Another object of this invention is to provide fabric will permanently retain its original elasan elastic rib-knit fabric wherein the primary ticity, even though the garment may be frequently nylon thread or yarn is plated over with an distorted and subject to frequent launderings. absorbent secondary yarn which is-comfortable The novel fabric herein disclosed is composed when in contact with the body of the wearer and of two or more threads, one of which will herewhich is also capable of being readily dyed. inafter be referred to as the primary thread, Other objects of the inventiom reside in the or yarn, and the other, the secondary thread construction of an elastic rib-knit fabric comor yarn. I have discovered that nylon thread or posed of a plurality of threads one of said threads yarn, which is now well known in the art, possesses being nylon and thus having the inherent characteristic of rendering the composite fabric highly elastic and resistant to distortion; in the provision of such a fabric which is extremely simple and inexpensive to produce, and which may readily'be knitted on conventional knitting machines without requiring any alterations in the construction thereof; and in the provision of such a fabric which is soft, pliable, and has absorbent inner and outer surfaces and which may be readily processed as any conventional fabric, when it is to be used in the construction of certain types of garments which may require the fabric to be bleached, dyed, or otherwise treated in the process of manufacturing the garments.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the annexed claims.

In the accompanying drawings there has been disclosed a structure designed to carry out the various objects of the invention, but it is to be understood that the invention is not confined to the exact features shown, as various changes may be made within the scope of the claims which follow.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view of a section of fabric greatly enlarged to illustrate more clearly the inter-knitting of the primary thread in a one and one ribknit fabric;

Figure 2 is a view quite similar to Figure 1 on a smaller scale more clearly illustrating the plating of the secondary thread over the primary thread;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 of a section of fabric clearly illustrating the plating of the secondary thread over the primary thread in a two and two rib-knit fabric;

Figure 4 is a view similarto Figure 2 of a section of fabric clearly illustrating the plating of the secondary thread over the primary thread in 8. three and three rib-knit fabric;

Figure 5 is a view showing a garment having the improved fabric embodied in the collar and cuif portions thereof; and

Figure 6 is a view showing a portion of a sweater embodying the invention.

In the selected embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, there is illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, on a greatly enlarged scale, a section of a one and one rib-knitted fabric in which each course is shown composed of a plurality of threads 2 and 3, the thread 2 being of conventional material such as cotton, rayon, or wool, which will hereinafter be referred to as the "secondary thread, and a nylon thread or yarn which will hereinafter be referred to as the primary thread.

In a one and one rib-knit fabric such as herein disclosed, the threads 2 and 3 are inter-knitted to form alternately successive loops 4 and 5 in each course, the courses being designated by the reference characters A, B, C, and D. The intermanently distorted as a result of periodical stretching. These advantages result not only from the inherent elasticity of the nylon primary thread or yarn but also from the property of thisyarn of becoming set or acquiring and tending to retain the shape of the stitch formed in the knitting operation.

The secondary thread 2 provides the necessary means whereby the composite fabric may be readily dyed, colored, or otherwise treated as is common with fabrics to be embodied in garments of the 'class herein referred to. The secondary thread `2 also makes it possible to provide a highly elastic fabric which is also absorbent in that it is possible to form a fabric wherein an absorbent secondary thread appears on both the inner and outer surfaces of the fabric.

In Figures 1 and 2, the secondary thread is shown plated over the primary thread, which is common practice in the art, when one side of the fabric is to be given any desired color by subjecting it to conventional dyeing processes, as the secondary thread will take the dye, as is well known in the art, whereas the nylon primary thread may not take the dye sulciently to provide the desired intensity or permanency of color. More importantly, the elastic fabric thus formed is provided with absorbent inner and outer surfaces which are more comfortable to the wearer of a garment formed of this fabric .when the fabric comes into contact with the body of the person.

The rib knit type of stitch has been found highly desirable in a fabric of this type and it has also locked stitches of adjacent courses cooperate to e provide the usual wales of the fabric designated by the reference characters E, F, G, H, and I.

In the novel fabric herein disclosed, the primary yarn or thread 3 supplies the necessary strength and elasticity to the fabric and renders the fabric permanently distortion-proof. In other words, the primary thread or yarn 3 permits the fabric to be readily stretched within reasonable limits and with the assurance that the fabric will always return to its normal condition without danger of any of its stitches becoming perbeen discovered that the best results are obtained with a closely knit rib knit fabric or in other words a fabric having a high stitch count.

In Figures 3 and 4 the features of this invention are shown embodied in a two and two rib knit fabric and a three and three rib knit fabric respectively. The secondary thread 2 and the primary thread 3 are inter-knitted to form successive pairs or triplets of loops 4 and 5 in the two and two rib knit fabric of Figure 3 and the three and three rib knit fabric of Figure 4, respectively, in each of the courses designated A and B. The wales E, F, G, H, and I are shown in Figure 3 and the wales E, F, G, H, I, J, and K are shown in Figure 4. The advantages of rib knit fabrics described in connection with the one and one rib construction shown in Figures 1 and 2 may thus be obtained in the same manner in two and two and three and three knit fabrics as shown in Figures 3 and 4. Likewise the advantages and features of this invention may be embodied in two and three knit fabrics or one and three rib knit fabrics and other combinations.

It is also desirable to prepare fabrics embodying the features of this invention wherein a nylon primary thread and a secondary cotton thread are employed in one course and a plain cotton thread employed in an adjacent course. These courses may be alternated throughout the fabric for the purpose of controlling the degree of elasticity of the finished fabric. Fabrics of this type are especially useful in forming the leg band portions on underwear and pants where the recovery resiliency and recovery characteristics need not be as pronounced as they are in neckband portions.

In Figure 5, there is shown a garment comprising the usual body 6 having a neck opening 1 formed by an elastic neck portion or band 8 constructed of an elastic rib knit fabric such as herein disclosed. The sleeve portions 8 are shown provided with bands or sections Il of a similar elastic rib knitfabrlc. By reference to Figure 5, it will be noted that the elastic neck band l and sleeve bands Il closely t the body, whereby the garment provides a comfortable fit at the neck and sleeves and also presents a very neat appearance.

In Figure 6 there is shown a portion of a garment comprising an elastic neck band I2 and sleeve bands I3 constructed of the novel elastic rib knit fabric herein disclosed. In this gure, it will be noted the neck band I2 and the sleeve band I3 are contracted to their normal conditions, whereas in Figure 5, the sleeve bands in particular, are shown expanded somewhat to iit the wearers arm.

In garments, such as turtleneck sweaters, sweat shirts, T shirts, knit pajamas, and the like, it is of utmost importance that the neck portions in particular, of the garments snugly t the neck of the wearer. This, as hereinbefore stated, has been practically impossible with garments of this type as now commonly constructed, primarily because the fabric constituting the neck and wrist portions of such garments are usually constructed of body fabric yarns which have an exceedingly short elastic life, or one or more rubber threads are used which detract from the appearance of the garment and which may lose their original elasticity, after which the garment may poorly fit around the neck and wrists of the wearer.

The novel fabric herein disclosed, positively eliminates the above objectionable feature in that it will permanently retain its elasticity so that the garment will always properly ilt the neck and such other portions of the wearers body where it may be used to obtain a snug ilt.

While I have herein referred to the invention as being embodied in a rib knit fabric, I do not wish to be so limited as the invention may iind use in other types of fabric without departing from the scope of the invention.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art thathaveaccomplishedatleastthenincipai objects of my invention, and that it will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments herein described may be variously changed and modiiied without departing from the spirit of the inventionl and that the invention is capable of uses and has advantages not herein specifically described; hence, it will be appreciated that the herein disclosed embodiments are illustrative only, and that my invention is not limited thereto.

I claim:

1. In a knitted garment having a body portion, in combination therewith a knitted neck band and knitted cuffportions which are more elastic than said body portion, one at least ofsaid knitted neck band and cuff portions comprising a rib knit wherein each stitch comprises nylon thread and cotton thread, said cotton thread being plated over said nylon thread whereby said cotton thread appears on the inner and outer surfaces of the fabric.

2. A knitted garment as set forth in claim 1 wherein one at least of said knitted neck band and cuff portions comprises a rib knit wherein each stitch of alternate courses of stitches comprises nylon thread and cotton thread, said cotton thread being plated over said nylon thread, whereby said cotton thread appears on the inner and outer surfaces of the fabric, and each stitch of the courses of stitches intermediate said alternate courses of stitches is plain cotton thread.

CARROLL R. ANDERSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ille of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 391,006 Munsing Oct. 9, 1888 391,007 Munsing Oct. 9, 1888 2,332,738 Meade Oct. 26, 1943 

